MUMBAI: While we think that the market for regional music is waning, it is quite the opposite. The recent feat achieved by the YouTube channel of Speed Records along with Times Music, a Punjabi music channel is evidence enough for the demand for regional music. The channel is the only regional channel to have 10 million subscribers, a trivia worth applauding.

An artist roster worth boasting and reach beyond the Punjabi geography, Speed Records did what other regional YouTube channel could only think of.

“We signed with Times Music in December 2017 for a three-year period. The collaboration has brought immense success. When we started the channel in January 2017, our subscriber base was around 40 lakhs, and today we are proud for the 10 million landmark,” says Speed Records director Satvinder Singh Kohli.

With distinct bifurcation of roles, the collaboration has reaped benefits within a time frame of only four months. “Times Music is for sales, while Speed Records looks after artist management and content development.”

Since its inception in 2004, Speed Records has curated many shows, introduced many artists, and been one of the major reasons for Punjabi Music being at its best.

“The most spoken language in India is Hindi, followed by Punjabi. And a lot of the credit goes to music and movies. Especially Bollywood, as it has promoted Punjabi culture beyond the northern belt.”

Kohli adds, “We are a growing company and we also would like to become corporate. We are slowly but steadily getting there.”

Punjab, as a region is known for its music, especially the world-famous Bhangra. However, beyond that, there is a lot of folk music in Punjab that has taken a step back. Kohli, along with popular music, is also bringing forth folk music but with a twist, “We are promoting folk fusion, as we believe in walking with the time. Folk Fusion is popular and it sells well.”

According to him, the most famous Punjabi star currently is Parmish Verma, “He also had a successful track called Gaal Nahi Kadni, with views over 111 million.”

Apart from recorded music, Speed Records’ other core business is live events. “We have many IPs. One of them is Crossblade, a Punjabi music festival. We have over 40 artists performing over two days. Each day we start at 4 pm and finish at 11 pm. We have done it till now in Chandigarh, Jaipur and Lucknow. We just completed in Jaipur and had Guru Randhawa and Nucleya as the headliners. Another fest we have is Lager n Barrel, which is primarily a beer fest. The music here is not restricted to Punjabi, but we have Indie Pop music.”

About future plans, Kohli says, “We want to take our IPs across the nation and world. Currently, Punjabi music is going through its golden period and we would like the world to know what talent this industry has. We also want to engage more into ‘Cross World’ music.”